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Selecting soybean varieties for 2013

How to maximize your farm income by selecting high-yielding and pest resistant soybean varieties.

The soybean varieties you select will directly affect your yield potential
and profits. For this reason, select your varieties on the basis of yield, pest
and pathogen resistance, maturity, lodging and quality.

Yield

Yield is the most important characteristic to consider when selecting
soybean varieties. Michigan State University
Extension analyzed yield data from the Michigan Soybean Performance Reports
from 2006 to 2011 to demonstrate how dramatically variety selection impacts
soybean yields and profitability. Table 1 summarizes how variety selection
impacted soybean yield, and Table 2 shows how variety selection affected gross
income.

Table 1. Yield advantage of the highest-yielding
soybean varieties over the average yield of all the varieties and the
lowest-yielding varieties averaged across all locations and maturity groups from the “Michigan Soybean Performance Reports” (Roundup Ready varieties only).

Year

High Minus
the Average (bu/ac)

High Minus
the Low (bu/ac)

2006

6.6

14.4

2007

5.8

14.1

2008

5.0

10.7

2009

5.0

12.1

2010

4.2

8.1

2011

5.2

12.0

Table 2. 1Economic
advantage of the highest-yielding soybean varieties over the average yield of
all the varieties and the lowest-yielding varieties averaged across all
locations and maturity groups from the “Michigan Soybean Performance Reports”
(Roundup Ready varieties only).

Year

High Minus
the Average ($/ac)

High Minus
the Low ($/ac)

2006

$43.72

$92.59

2007

$58.58

$142.41

2008

$49.85

$106.68

2009

$45.50

$110.11

2010

$47.46

$91.53

2011

$65.00

150.00

1Economic advantage was determined by multiplying the
yield advantage of the highest yielding varieties by the USDA average prices
received for each marketing year—$10.10/bu in 2007-08, $9.97/bu in 2008-09,
$9.59/bu for 2009, $11.30 for 2010, and $12.50 for 2011-2012 (estimated).

The yield potential under ideal growing conditions varies among varieties
and the maximum yield potential of a given variety is also affected by weather
and other environmental conditions. A variety that has the highest yield
potential under ideal conditions may not yield as well as others when
confronted with yield-limiting factors. Research has shown that evaluating
performance over a wide range of locations and over multiple years will help
you select the best adapted varieties for your farm. The “Michigan Soybean
Performance Report” is an excellent source for this information. The 2012 “Michigan
Soybean Performance Report” will be posted online at the MSU Variety Trials website in
mid-November, published in the Michigan Farm News and sent directly to
all soybean producers in Michigan
by the Michigan Soybean Checkoff.

Maturity

The maturity range of the varieties you select also affects
your net income. Always select varieties that will reach physiological maturity
prior to a killing frost. Selecting soybean varieties that are too early for a
given area will lead to lower yields as the plants will probably be short and fill
seeds under hotter and drier conditions. Selecting varieties that are too late
increases the risk of frost and freeze damage. Earlier maturing soybean
varieties may be the best choice in fields where wheat will be planted the
following fall or lodging has been a problem.

Pest and pathogen resistance

Significant yield reductions
from soybean aphids, soybean diseases such as Phytophthora root and stem rot,
white mold, sudden death syndrome (SDS) and soybean cyst nematodes (SCN) can be
prevented by selecting resistant or tolerant varieties. Limited supplies of
varieties containing the “SPARTA”
aphid-resistant germplasm developed at MSU will be available in 2013. SPARTA research was funded
by the Michigan Soybean Checkoff program. The 2012 MSU Soybean Performance Report lists the genetic
resistance to Phytophthora of the varieties tested. Seed suppliers and
university performance trials are also good sources of information about
varieties’ tolerance to SDS and Phytophthora. Southern Illinois University and the University of Illinois have excellent data regarding
the SDS tolerance of varieties. Producers are encouraged to rotate sources of
SCN resistance and seed suppliers are the best place to get information
regarding the source of the SCN resistance for their SCN resistant varieties.

Lodging

Lodged soybean plants can increase harvest losses and
significantly delay harvest operations. Lodging problems are most likely to
occur when soybeans are grown on muck soils or under irrigation. Use the “Michigan
Soybean Performance Report” to obtain lodging scores for the varieties entered
in the trials.

Quality

Producers should also consider quality characteristics when selecting
soybean varieties. Asian buyers demand soybeans consisting of 19 percent oil
and 35 percent protein. Because Asian markets account for more than 50 percent
of U.S.
soybean exports, soybean producers need to meet this standard to maintain
access to these markets. Oil and protein levels vary among varieties, so
producers should select varieties containing 19 percent oil and 35 percent
protein when possible. The Michigan Soybean Performance Report lists the oil
and protein levels for all of the entries.

A new searchable
database for the Michigan
Soybean Performance Report is available online. The searchable database enables soybean
producers to input specific search criteria such as soybean cyst nematode
resistance, phytophthora resistance, protein and oil content and maturity to
identify the highest-yielding varieties having the selected characteristics.

This article was produced by the SMaRT project (Soybean
Management and Research Technology). The SMaRT project was developed to help Michigan producers
increase soybean yields and farm profitability. SMaRT is a partnership between MSU
Extension and the Michigan Soybean Checkoff program.